


All Grown Up

by HayamaRei



Series: Of Thieves and Family Bonds [5]
Category: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Genre: F/M, Family Bonding, Heart-to-Heart, Sort Of, thieving as always
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-04
Updated: 2018-10-04
Packaged: 2019-07-25 08:30:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,515
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16193852
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HayamaRei/pseuds/HayamaRei
Summary: Blaise's training with the Guild finally leads to something.





	All Grown Up

**Author's Note:**

> I'm almost two weeks late to posting this and I'm sorry but real life got in the way. 
> 
> But I'm back an here's another short one. I wanted to get this in before the major time jump I'm gonna make with the next ones. 
> 
> Enjoy!

Blaise was startled out of his dreams by a knapsack being thrown on top of him. He opened his eyes and squinted at the figure looming above his bed. 

“What the hell?” He croaked out. He woke up early every morning to train, but he could feel that it was way too early now, and every minute of sleep he could get was precious to him. 

Brynjolf apparently didn't think he deserved that. “Get up and get dressed, lad. We're leaving soon.”

Now that made Blaise wake up. “Leaving? Where to?”

“To test you.” Brynjolf said and without further explanation started walking away. “Be ready in five!” He called over his shoulder.

Blaise's stomach tied itself into a knot. No one had told him anything about testing, he wasn't prepared. What did testing even mean? With his head swimming with questions Blaise stood up and got himself dressed. The knapsack had his armor and his tools already packed and he added a bottle of water and some food in as well. He didn't want to be underprepared. 

Exactly five minutes later he was done and standing in the center of the Cistern. Brynjolf and his mother joined him a minute later, both of them carrying similar bags with them. 

“We'll take horses from the stables.” His mother said, using her Guild Master voice. The one that meant business and held little attachment but carried with authority. Blaise always found it quite badass. “I'll explain things on the way.” She directed the last words at Blaise and didn't wait around for small talk, heading towards the exit. The other two followed.

In his three months there, Blaise had learned a lot about his mother that he couldn't possibly learn if he wasn't there. She was a leader, and while most people expected that from the Dragonborn it went deeper than that. She was a leader who understood her people and the members of the Guild trusted her in return, which was what made them so strong. Vex had told him that they used to be just a place where thieves gathered and took odd jobs before Moira took control. Now, the place was like a home and everyone inside was like a family. And just like family there were fights and arguments and stupid ideas leading to small disasters, and it truly felt like a second home to Blaise as well. It was a first home to many of the others, too. And it was all thanks to his mother. His mother who took no shit from anyone but always took the time to listen to everyone. His mother who had a mischievous side he'd never suspected of. His mother’s true self.

Three horses already waited for them at the stables when they arrived. The moon shone above, giving the fog filling woods outstretching before them an eerie glow. They didn’t talk while mounting the horses and soon the only thing filling the quiet night was the sound of hooves clicking against the cobbled path. It was calm and Blaise would’ve found it pleasant if it wasn’t for his heart racing in his chest. 

\------ 

Moira took her time, waiting until they were a good distance away from Riften before she began explaining. She was excited in a way she hadn’t been before. A worried excitement, if she had to put it into words. So far Blaise had only done small alone jobs around Riften, the most dangerous one being the jails. The rest of the time he’d tagged along other members on the low risk missions, more to study them than to actively do anything. And he was doing great. More than that, really. Delvin praised him as one of the most silent sneaks he’d met, his lockpicking abilities were growing by the day, and with his alchemy mixes work he was great at creating distractions. His archery left a lot to desire, weapons had never been the boy’s strong suit, but he wasn’t giving up, trying harder each passing day to get better. Moira couldn’t be prouder, both as a parent and as a Guild Master. 

And yet she still worried, that was inevitable. When Brynjolf had approached her few days prior to suggest setting up the proving she’d known it was time but still wanted to delay it some more. She was still afraid to set her child out into the big world. But Brynjolf was right, and she couldn’t keep treating Blaise as a kid when everyone around them saw that he was ready. And so Brynjolf and her spent the following days planning it out. 

Now, provings didn’t usually go that way in the Guild. Most thieves were already established thieves by the time they joined. Most had something to speak of, a resume if you would. So sending them out on a job once was enough to know if the person was good enough. And if later it turned out they weren’t, well, then they stopped being the Guild’s problem. Blaise, however, was a unique case, so they had to come up with a unique test to make sure he was ready.

“We’re headed towards Fort Greenwall.” Moira finally spoke, Blaise’s head snapping in her direction so fast she was sure it must’ve hurt. “As you know it’s occupied by Imperial soldiers, and that is why we chose the place. There are patrols going around but if you do get caught they won’t kill you on the spot.” Her voice wavered for a second and she knew both of the others caught on it. No one said a thing. “Of course, the goal is to not get caught, and if you do, it will have some dire consequences for your position in the Guild, is that understood?”

“Yes ma’am.” Blaise said with almost fierce determination, despite how nervous he obviously was.

“Good. Brynjolf will give you a list of things you need to bring back out of the fort. Consider this a real job, if you don’t get everything on the list you don’t get paid. If you get caught, you compromise your position in the Guild. It will be ideal if no one knows you’ve been there until they discover the missing things, but if you do need to knock someone out in order to remain hidden then do so.” She kept explaining while keeping her voice stern, as if she was talking to any other Guild member. “We will set up a temporary camp not far from the fort. Brynjolf and I will be waiting for you there. You will have until dawn to observe, go in, steal and go out.”

Brynjolf had pulled out the item list while she was speaking and handed it over to Blaise who clutched it in his hand. “Understood.” He gave a firm nod. “I won’t let you down.” 

“I know you won’t.” Moira replied softly, the edge gone from her voice. Blaise visibly relaxed and she smiled at him. 

\------- 

Blaise felt a lot more confident when they stopped their horses by a big rock and started preparing their camp. He knew what lay ahead of him and what he needed to do and he could start coming up with a plan. He was almost always able to clear his head and focus as soon as he had his goal laid out in front of him.

He lit up a torch and sat on the ground, getting busy memorizing the list while his mother and Brynjolf set up camp. There were five things on the list. An imperial dagger, a helmet, a pair of boots, a key, and a tactics journal. All things small enough to smuggle out without staggering him which was good, he could fit it all in a small bag. 

Several minutes later the camp was all set with bedrolls stretched next to the fire. 

“I’m ready.” He declared, throwing the paper into the fire. 

His mother and Brynjolf shared a look and then turned their eyes towards him. 

“Don’t take any unnecessary risks.” Brynjolf told him while using a stick to poke at the fire. “And if you get caught don’t try anything brave. If it happens we’ll come and get you out.”

“I won’t get caught.” Blaise stated and stood up. “Now if you’ll excuse me, my time is limited.” And with that he walked away and in the direction of the fort.

\------- 

An hour and a half later Moira jumped off the rock they were camped next to. 

“He went in.” She said, chewing on her bottom lip. She was clutching a spyglass in her hand.

“Took his time scouting.” 

Moira sat down and rested her head against Brynjolf’s shoulder. “He likes calculating before acting.” 

“I know.” Brynjolf hummed and took her hand, intertwining his fingers. “Stop worrying, he’ll be okay.” 

“I’m not worrying.” 

“You stood up there for over an hour.”

Moira made an unintelligible noise. “As a Master I need to-” 

“Bullshit.” Brynjolf interrupted her with a laugh. “You don’t need to defend yourself. But have more faith in the lad, he’s got this.” 

Moira heaved a deep sigh. “I know. I have faith in him, that’s not the problem. I know he’s good, but this? This means he’s growing up.” 

Brynjolf chuckled. “Scary, isn’t it?” 

“Shut up.” Moira slapped his arm only making him laugh again. “It feels like it was yesterday when I took him away from that farm. Look at him now.” 

“I know. It feels like it was yesterday when you first walked into Riften, too.” He hummed. “Time is tricky like that, lass. But here we are now and things are even better than they were back then.” 

She sighed again and looked up at him, giving him a small smile. “They are. You’re right, I overthink this.” 

Brynjolf leaned down and kissed her forehead. “That’s okay, I’m here to hold you back.” 

“Thank Nocturnal.” 

\------- 

An hour later it was Brynjolf who was up on the rock, scouting the fort. The guards on top gave no indication that anything was wrong which meant Blaise was still inside and undiscovered. He was supposed to be finishing up already. Most jobs were meant to be quick. In-grab-out was their preferred method. But the proving wasn’t about speed and they’d put items like the key and the journal in there on purpose. They needed to challenge the lad. Still, an hour was quite enough. Sunrise was approaching, too, and Blaise most likely knew it as well. 

The lad was eager to learn and very passionate about it. Just like Brynjolf himself, and Moira, Delvin, and Vex, he was a born thief not only by skill but also by heart. He was just like his mother despite them not being related by blood. And Brynjolf had grown attached to him in the past months. He’d started considering him as a part of the family, someone he cared about unconditionally, just like Moira and Delvin and Vex and the others who’d been there since the beginning. And not just because he was Moira’s child but because he fit in there perfectly.

Blaise himself was conflicted about Brynjolf and he was well aware of the fact. He knew that for the lad he was the odd one out, the man who posed a threat to his family and he didn’t blame him for it. He didn’t go out of his way to try and bond, didn’t treat him differently, and he could tell Blaise was glad about it. And lately the subtle jabs toward him in their conversations had started feeling a lot more like a joke than anything with actual malice behind it. Brynjolf was okay with that too. They were going towards something and he didn’t know what but he knew that things would work out in the end. 

“Anything yet?” Moira asked from below where she’d been trying to read a book. 

Brynjolf looked over the fort again. “Not yet, but soon I’m sure.” 

“Do you think he’s okay?” 

“I’m sure he’s okay.” Brynjolf replied, continuing to look through the spyglass. “He’s a strategist and this job was designed for him. He’s probably having a ton of fun right now.”

Moira snorted. “Fair point.” 

It was about twenty minutes later when the sky was just a hue lighter when Brynjolf barely caught the shadow of someone jumping out a low window. Everything was still for several moments, almost making the man believe he’d seen wrong when the shadow emerged under the moonlight about a hundred meters away from the fort walls, sprinting towards the cover of the trees. 

“He’s out.” Brynjolf declared and Moira jumped on her feet. 

“The guards?” 

“Not suspecting anything. He’s clear.” He put the spyglass down and got off the rock, joining his lover who was grinning with relief, the tension that had been locking her shoulders all night finally releasing. 

The two sat down on their bedrolls and started pretending they hadn’t been surveying him at all. Blaise came in running a few minutes later, his footsteps barely making a sound against the ground. He was out of breath and sweaty but his whole face was lit up by a brilliant smile. He held up his bag triumphantly. 

“Job. Done.” He panted and handed the bag to Moira before collapsing down next to her and reaching for the water flask. 

Moira opened the bag and pulled out the stolen items. A pair of boots, a leather bound journal, a helmet, a coin purse, a bottle of ale, a dagger, a sweetroll, and finally a key. The woman raised an eyebrow. 

“That’s more than what was on the list.” 

Blaise grinned at her. “You didn’t say I couldn’t take anything else. Those were easy to grab so I grabbed them.” He stated proudly. Brynjolf grinned as well. 

Moira stared the lad down long enough for Brynjolf to see a flash of hesitation in his eyes. Then she smiled. “Great job. You passed.” 

Blaise threw his hands in the air. “Yes!” Making both adults laugh. 

Moira reached into her pocket and produced two leather pouches. “Here, this is the gold for the job.” She said and handed him one. 

Blaise’s eyes widened. “This is a lot of septims.” 

“Well you earned them.” Brynjolf piped in. “Real jobs get real money.” 

Blaise looked almost star-struck. 

“And this,” Moira handed him the other pouch, “Is your graduation item.”

She waited until Blaise pulled out an amulet of articulation and stared at it with amazement. “Is this…?” 

Moira laughed. “Welcome to the Guild, kid.” They’d started giving the amulets to all the official members after the Guild returned to its glory as an honorary thing.

Blase launched forward and tackled his mother in a hug. “Thank you!” 

Moira hugged back. “That doesn’t mean your training is over. You still have a lot to learn, but now you’re ready to continue learning out there too.” 

“I know.” Blaise said and pulled away after a few seconds. “I’m gonna become the best damn thief out there.” 

Moira and Brynjolf both laughed. “We know.” They chorused.

**Author's Note:**

> Originally this was going to include what happened in the fort but I tried and it didn't work out so I left it like this instead. I suck like that. 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed and the next one should be up pretty soon.


End file.
